elizalou

I'll be going and will let you know how it is!

Hello fellow MGH prospects : ) I'm going to the info session April 2nd too. I am deciding between MGH and BU which I'll be visiting that weekend too. Are you guys both CSD undergrads? I'm not so I am not sure yet what area I want to specialize in. kroge23, did you get the impression that there are opportunities for both clinical and education settings when you visited?

Hi, I thought I would take advantage of your Boston apartment skills and ask if you knew where the best place to live might be if I am going to school at Mass General Hospital Institute. It is on the Charlestown Navy Yard which I have heard is difficult to get to via the T, is that true? I am looking around Somerville, Davis Square area but really have no idea what area would be the easiest in terms of commuting (as well as not being too expensive or "fratty"). Any info you have about the area, or anyone else who knows that area, would be appreciated. Thanks!

Aw sad, me neither! But on the bright side it makes decisions easier!

I definitely understand the difficulties of visiting the schools, I wish I could make it to them all! I am lucky though that my top two schools are only a 6 hour drive away, actually all of them are except for Northwestern which keeps nagging me. I am a year out of college and was a Linguistics and Spanish major, education minor. I have had experiences interning for and shadowing different SLPs and was most recently a first grade teacher in Guatemala. Since I wasn't a CSD undergrad I haven't really had enough exposure and knowledge to decide about what kind of SLP I want to be but I know that I love and am good at working with children. So that is definitely something I want to pursue and would want to try out both clinical and school settings. But I also want a school that lets me explore different settings and populations which is why I like both BU and MGH so much. The biggest pluses to MGH are that they are offering me a bit more money and after taking 3 more pre-reqs this summer (online, since I can't move to Boston until the fall) I will be able to start right in on the regular grad student path and BU still has 3 more classes that I would need to take next summer which is strange because I'll be starting with out "pre" requisites and because it will prolong getting my degree aka more money. So I'm kind of hoping that I'll go to visit and feel great about MGH and sure it is right for me otherwise I am really going to have a hard choice!

I am looking very seriously at BU too, I just don't know! My top two are BU and MGH and I'm going to visit them next weekend. Where you a communications disorders undergrad? I wasn't so I feel like I don't have as much as an idea of what I need to be looking into or asking about. Do you have any idea what type of SLP or environment you want to work in?

No but I'm planning on going to the open house so hopefully that will solidify my leanings towards MGH!

Oh that is a really good idea having a chat with someone who is there, how did you set that up?

I am looking into BU and MGH as my final two I have just decided... although even deciding to say no to any of the schools is hard. Have you visited either BU or MGH yet?

Hahahha, that is great and actually word for word what I told my friend this morning!

Yeah it's pretty crazy, I am pretty sure I am not going to go there though... especially since I haven't heard anything about scholarships. I was really interested in the program because of the bilingual emphasis program which I would be going into if I went there but after more consideration of big picture (tuition, location, cost of living ect) I have decided that it isn't the best option for me. I am going to be deciding between MGH and BU and couldn't be happier! I'm going to go visit them during the open house April 2nd but right now I am leaning slightly towards MGH. Do you have any idea where you want to end up?

Tuition per credit/point is $1,178 and you need 74 credit points if you are not an SLP background (aka me) and at least 50.... so that's like $87,000 for someone with no background, yikes!!

Has anyone heard anything about funding from Columbia TC? It's SO expensive!

I haven't heard from Northwestern either...

Thanks! I am in the process of figuring it out and talking to any current students and SLPs in the area but I don't know... I am sort of leaning towards MGH which is strange because I thought BU was my first choice when I was applying. We'll see though and hopefully visiting them both will really help me make a decision!

I think that this is pretty much the place to do it but you can also start another forum subject if you wanted. I live right down the street from Nazareth College and am taking two SLP prerequisite classes there right now and am really liking it so far. I don't know much about their graduate program in general though because I decided not to apply since I want to get out of my hometown for a bit. But I do know that if you are looking for a good deaf specialty program then Nazareth is probably a great option. Rochester has a very large and active deaf community so there are tons of opportunities for placements and work after school here. I'm not sure how much sway it has if you visit the program beforehand but I honestly wouldn't think it would make that much of a difference for admissions. I would think that it mainly be more helpful for you just in deciding what kind of program you want. I'd think that your academic record, experience and initiative in becoming familiar with the field, essay and letters of rec. ect would have the most weight. Hope that helps a little! Overall I have had a great experience there and have found the faculty very knowledgeable, approachable and able to practically apply information we are learning. Good luck on your search!

Thanks! And no problem for the stats. I was a 3.95 overall GPA, 4.0 double major in Linguistics and Spanish; 660 Verbal, 650 Quantitative and 5.0 Writing. Intern, volunteering and shadowing experience with various SLP's and children's organizations and four months as a first grade teacher in Guatemala.

Congrats! It's the biggests sigh of relief isn't it!

Yes, right in the acceptance letter. Does anyone know anything about negotiation funding with grad schools? I know it is normal to do for undergrad but I have no idea about grad school. Would it be strange or presumptuous to ask a school is they would match my offer at another school?

Hey, no need to apologize for the ramble, that is exactly what we need to be doing to sort this all out in our heads! I haven't had the first hand experiences that you have with each school but have also heard the same thing about the helpfulness and approachability of MGH. And I think that is a great point about a change of scenery and getting away from the large university setting and into a more professional, graduate student one (although I have never had either so I guess I can only think which I would prefer). I also have felt the draw because of the research at BU since it aligns perfectly with my specific interest (bilingualism) but I also don't know if I really want to focus on research versus focus on working with bilingual clients and in multicultural settings. The main thing that is stopping me from definitely thinking I want to go to MGH is that I know they have a reputation as "medically" and "clinically" focused and I am not sure I definitely want to follow that path. I would love to explore all options and clinical environments and have always had a draw to kids so I know that working in an educational setting would be a great fit for me at some point in my career. But that being said I also haven't even started grad school yet (I was a Linguistics, Education and Spanish under grad) and would love to have the chance of working in a medical setting. AH I am so confused and I think I should definitely get out there to visit the schools at their open houses but it is nice to talk it out with other people now too.... I am just so excited and want to get it figured out! Oh and a side note, BU has many more prereqs (I only have 2 so far) and since MGH only has 3 that I have yet to complete I could do those this summer online (I can't go to Boston until the start of the fall semester) and then be right on tract to finish in 2 years.... which means less money over all.

Have you visited MGH or BU? I'm kind of in the same boat but don't know why I have this gut reaction to want to go to MGH when BU has kind of been at the top of the list in my head the whole time...

I am deciding between BU and MGH too and it is so hard! I got offered money at both but a little bit more at MGH and it already has a cheaper tuition in general. I am not from the area so I haven't visited either school, know where they are in Boston or really gotten a feel for their programs. Both great schools on paper but I am very conflicted. Does anyone know these schools better and could offer any insights? I am planning on going to the open houses for them which are April 2nd but I wish I could find out more before then.

Has anyone heard anything from Columbia TC yet? Or any news about when they are going to start sending decisions?

I was talking about Boston U but I'm not sure about the other person haha.

I just got my letter in the mail today so I bet yours is on the way! I was also so anxious to hear from them because I think it may be my top choice (although I am now very confused about everything haha). But I live in NY so it has much farther to travel to get to you. Good luck though, I hope it's good news for you!